The Lost Night Fury
by Firebeach47
Summary: This is a story about a young and mischievous Toothless, starting long before and leading up to the time of Hiccup. New chapters will be coming out at least once a week (or not, school isn't being kind).
1. Chapter 1: The Lost Dragons

**Chapter 1: The Lost Dragons**

The sun was beginning to disappear behind a spruce-covered island as a dark shape raced through the woods. The first flecks of snow were already hitting the ground by the time the young dragon finally caught sight of the familiar rock outcropping that hid his family's nest from prying eyes. He scrambled up the large rocks leading to the hidden entrance and leaped inside. Breathing heavily, he shook the snow free from the tips of his ears and looked up to find a disappointed Mother staring down at him.

 _Uh oh, this can't be good._ He knew there was little he could say that would help his position. She had left him detailed instructions to stay in the cave while she looked for food. He sighed and stared at the ground as she bounded down from her nesting spot. _Mother, I'm sorry, I-  
_

She interrupted him. _I don't want to hear it! Why did you leave the safety of our nest?_ _You know the human world is at war with us. Every human is a threat to us, especially you! If they found you... They kill without cause and attack without reason! The beasts would love nothing more than to find you, a defenseless hatchling out in the wild. The beasts would turn you into a boot if ever they found you!_

The small Fury shifted on his feet uncomfortably. He didn't really want to be a boot. I _know Mother, I didn't mean to stay out so late, I was exploring in the forest, I just thought if-_

 _Late?_ She huffed a short steam of smoke from her nostrils. You _weren't supposed to be out at all! I told you to STAY in the nest! I was so worried. What if you had gotten lost, or a human had found you?_ She paced around the cave. _When I got back from, from hunting, and couldn't find you... I was about to leave to go out looking for YOU! What if one of the humans had found you? I couldn't bear to lose you, your Father, he... he's been away too long, you must listen to me. You don't know the world like I do..._

 _Yes, Mother, I..._ He sniffed slightly and looked up into her shining dark green eyes. _I didn't mean to worry you. I won't leave by myself ever again. I promise you._

She looked back at him and blinked, her anger seeming to melt away as quickly as it came. _I only want what's best for you... Please, don't leave the nest without me ever again._ She moved closer and wrapped a wing around him.

Moon thought she was being a little overdramatic. It's not like he had stayed out all night. Suddenly, he was surprised to hear a sort of whimpering noise coming from deep within her throat. _Was she, crying?_ He had never heard another dragon cry before, discluding himself, but this was different. Mother shouldn't be crying. He felt her large wing shaking against his own. Mother sniffed and inhaled deeply before speaking again.

 _If- When your Father returns, maybe things will be different, but of all the irresponsible..._ She was raising her voice again. _But... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to yell. But until then, please, let's stay here, safe and warm. The skies are bringing a storm that will last for days... But know this, nothing will ever happen to you, not if I have anything to say about it._

Moon nodded, feeling a little weird. _This sure is an extra long hug... She must have been really worried._

She suddenly moved away from him. _I got some fish for us, even some pike, your favorite. But first, let's see if you can create another one of those beautiful fires your Father taught you to make._

* * *

Curled up on his flat obsidian rock with his head resting on his forelegs, Moon sighed and thought back to his most recent conversation with Mother. " _If..._ " _Had she said that? Did she think Father wouldn't ever return? Father would come back, any day now... He had to, it's Father! He was the biggest, strongest, most clever dragon out there. No way could he... No, it's not possible. He would return, just like he always did._ He looked over to where Mother was sleeping. She had her wings wound over her head and still, she seemed to be shivering. It wasn't even that cold out, plus, Moon had just made a fire for them. He didn't understand.

Shuffling his wings, he tried not to think about what Mother had almost said. He poked an especially brilliant looking ember with a claw. It collapsed in on itself and disappeared into the ashes. After he made the fire and they ate the fish Mother had found, she had fallen asleep across from him. He was glad she didn't insist on staying up to make sure he didn't burn the cave down. Again.

This was usually around the time Father would tell a story. He missed those. Mother sometimes told a few good ones, but Moon preferred to hear Father's words. He was so good at telling stories. He thought back to one of the ancestral stories Father had often told him, especially after Moon didn't do so well on a flying lesson and was looking for some extra encouragement.

 _"We are Night Furies. Dragons said to be one with the night, armored with scales darker than the deepest shade of black. Respected by all, we are the swiftest and mightiest dragons ever to fly across the green-blue earth. We are the..."_

Moon struggled to remember his Father's words. He gazed into the fire he had (rather proudly) made by himself, using some smaller timbers from the woodpile. He always adored the grand stories Father used to tell during storytime. He told tales of ancient golden dragons that breathed brilliant blue fire, with numbers in the thousands spread all over the mainland and surrounding isles. They had been peaceful beings that roamed free to explore the ends of the earth.

Of course, this was long before dragons ever started to have problems with humans; long before the ruthless two-legs tried to take to take all of the mainlands for themselves; before the Furies took their rightful place with the strongest ancient dragons in the war to defend their homeland. Their eldest leader, with a long-forgotten name, had thought she alone could prevent the war with words instead of bloodshed. So she pulled their forces back and instead went alone to the humans and tried to reason with them. It was said that she crossed the border into their land, but never came back.

After this, the rest of the war had not gone well for them. Not a day after the leader of dragons disappeared past the human's border, the humans attacked. Despite the immense strength and size of the dragons, the humans won with their machines of death and destruction and seemingly infinite numbers. Father said most of the ancient dragons died during the war, and those that survived were slowly hunted to extinction. Now, with so few Furies left, it would be foolish to be anything but the most cautious in regard to humans.

Of course, this all happened hundreds of years before Moon was even born. He had been told time and time again how heartless and vicious humans were, but he still found it hard to believe. He hadn't even seen a human, or another dragon, besides Mother and Father. _It couldn't be that bad, out in the world... Could it?_

He looked back into the glowing logs. This was the third flame he had managed to conjure up from within himself. It felt super weird to breathe fire, he was afraid he would burn right up from the inside out if he wasn't careful. Father said that would never happen. Mother said most adolescent Furies couldn't sustain a flame until they were at least 5 years old. Moon had been happy to hear that, as he was only 3 as of this winter. He was proud, but later suspected she may have been exaggerating the age a little bit, perhaps to make him feel better about his lack of ability to fly.

Perhaps that was why she never wanted him to leave the nest alone. Maybe, if he could just learn to use his oversized wings properly, she might allow him to explore whenever he wanted. He had seen Father take off to go hunting many times, flying seemed so complicated, but Mother would be able to help him. She always seemed to be good at everything and flying was no exception. He decided he would talk with her tomorrow about taking him out for another flying lesson, then, once she saw how well he could fly, she would let him leave and explore the island whenever he wanted!

After making sure the fire wasn't in danger of spreading to the large pile of wood on the far side of the cave, Moon left his slab of rock and moved over to his Mother's much larger sleeping place to curl up against her warm side before drifting off to sleep.

* * *

Adurna woke with a start from her restless sleep. She was dreaming again, but not of pleasant things. She pricked her sensory ears up, looking around and sighed when she realized her son was lying right next to her.

She didn't know how to tell Moon what she had found on the beach that morning. She was distraught as she flew as quickly as she could back to the nest, and terrified when she found the cave without her Moon in it. He was missing for only a few minutes, but they felt like days to her. When he had returned, the words seemed to spill out of her mouth without thought. But she couldn't bring herself to tell him; she just couldn't.

Looking down at him, she smiled. Moon looked so much like his father. It showed in his deep green eyes, they always seemed to gleam with the same intelligence and playfulness as Argetir's once did. She thought back to the beach.

Adurna was flying over the north side of the island collecting fish in the tide pools, and that was when she found him. A blurry black shape, lying in a crumpled heap halfway up the shore of a shallow inlet. At first, she thought it was her imagination, but when she got closer she realized it was a dragon. Her dragon. The pain of the realization made her drift down and land some meters away from him. She dropped the fish and approached him, letting loose a low mournful cry. He was lying on the sand with his eyes closed, the low tides nipping at his long wings, trying to pull him back into the murky depths of the ocean.

She sniffed at his head, but she knew he had clearly passed on. Laying her head on his neck, she lay on the beach with him for a long while, too stunned to move. It was the thought of Moon alone in their nest that made her get up, but she couldn't leave before laying her mate to rest. She slowly stumbled away from Argetir and walked up the beach, past the tide pools, before finding a shallow spot in the dirt beneath a large willow tree.

The time it took to dig seemed to drift by so quickly, she hardly noticed how much time she ended up spending making her mate's final resting place. But she couldn't just leave him there on the beach, not for nature's creatures to deal with, no. This was something she had to do. She tore a large pine branch off a nearby tree and brought it to the beach. She turned her beloved unto the needles and used her powerful jaws to grab the branch and carefully pull him up to the willow tree.

She sat next time him, words unspoken, but all the while thinking of the memories they had made together. She remembered when she first saw him, and when he saw her. His mischievous, albeit goofy smile, his playful attitude towards life. When he tried to impress her and woo her. He didn't need to, but it made her smile. She supposed that was all he wanted.

The snow was beginning to fall around the tree, drifting down and clinging to the tips of the grass. She thought back to when Moon had hatched, how Argetir had loved him and spoke to her about him. Moon was too young, he didn't deserve this, Argetir didn't deserve this. She moaned and choked out a whisper. _Goodbye_ _my love, you will not be forgotten._


	2. Chapter 2: Danger in Winter

**Danger in Winter**

The cold wind was howling outside the warmth of the cave when Moon awoke. Feeling the empty space behind him, he realized Mother was already up. She was lying next to the entrance of the cave staring out into the snowstorm that had crept in overnight. He stretched his wings and stood up, shivering from the cold. Yawning, he stumbled over his own tail and nearly fell back down. Mother jerked her head around and gave him a small smile. _Good morning sweet one._

He shuffled over to her and gasped when he looked outside. The snow was swirling between the rocks and trees; overnight it had laid a heavy blanket over the entire wilderness. The trees were full of snow and the ground seemed to have disappeared under the brilliant whiteness. _Wow!_ _Mother, look at all that snow! Can I go out and play in it? Please?_

She looked down at him, her stern gaze already starting to form.

 _Oh, er. I mean, go out with you, of course._ Moon stammered, embarrassed at how soon he had forgotten his promise to of not going outside without her.

She hesitated before reluctantly agreeing. _Very well, but stay close by. A little thing like you could easily get lost in those drifts._

 _Sure thing Mother!_ He started forward to jump through the entrance, but Mother suddenly slammed a wing out in front of him. _WAIT, I heard something._ She slowly crept closer to the entrance and sniffed the air. _Ow..._ Moon rubbed his nose. Hitting her wing didn't hurt too much, but it definitely surprised him. _Mother, I-_ She cut him off. _Stay right here, do NOT leave this cave until I come back._

Moon looked down at the ground, disappointed. _Yes, Mother..._

Adurna nodded firmly and swiftly leaped out of the cave into the snowy wilderness.

Pricking his ears up, Moon grasped the edges of a stone and stood to watch as close as he dared on the edge of the cave's entrance. He saw her black shape sweep across the clearing in front of him, her head rotating left and right searching for any intruders. Moon's heart was racing. _What if a human is out there?_ _Could Mother fight a human?_ He thought so but was doubtful when he remembered Father's more dreadful stories about humans.

Minutes passed. Just when Moon thought it was nothing, Adurna froze in her tracks. Moon gasped and leaned his head out of the cave, trying to see catch a glimpse at what she saw. He couldn't see anything except the white of the snow and her blurry shape standing in the clearing. She slowly started to move in a semi-circle around a grove of trees. Moon peered farther out and almost slipped off the ledge he was clutching. He still couldn't see anything!

Mother made an almost full half-circle around the trees and stopped. The wind was billowing snow in her face as she slowly started creeping forward, keeping her head just barely above the snow with the rest of her body hidden as well as a black dragon can in the snow. She slowly came to a stop.

Moon held his breath. Nothing seemed to be happening. Suddenly two rabbits burst out from under the trees in front of her, and, with reflexes Moon could scarcely believe, she pounced on the first one and quickly used her wings to propel her in the path of the last one attempting to make an escape into the forest; catching and killing both of them in a manner of seconds.

Moon's jaw dropped in awe as she picked up the prey and made her way back to the cave, skipping over a larger snow drift. Moon scrambled out of the way and Adurna gracefully jumped back inside, dropping the rabbits.

The dragonet was breathless from watching all the action. _That was amazing Mother!_ _How did you even know they were there? Was that the sound you heard? Dragons, that was so cool! You just sneaked around crouching and stuff, then you were all grr-_ Moon acted out all that he had seen, running and jumping around the cave, his wings and tail flailing about after him.

She chuckled softly, watching him fool around. _I'm glad you enjoyed watching, and now we have our breakfast!_ _Hungry?_ Adurna dragged the closest rabbit in front of her. Moon sniffed at his rabbit. _Can I? It looks so good... though it's_ _awfully small._ Remembering his manners he quickly said, _but that's okay, you were so awesome! Did Father teach you those moves?_

 _I... Yes, he did Moon._ Whatever happiness she was feeling seemed to sink away when she heard Moon bring up his Father. It opened the terrible wound she had briefly stopped dwelling on during her hunt. Her appetite was gone. _Moon, I, I need._ Her head was spinning, she needed to keep it together in front of Moon. _I'm going to check outside for some more prey. You go ahead and eat these rabbits. I'll be right back, then we can go out and play in the snow, okay?_

Moon shifted and looked up. _Oh, alright. I'll save one for you, just in case you can't find more._ But Adurna was already on her way out, trying not to choke up in front of her young dragonet. She left the cave entrance and immediately took to the air, heading to the north side of the island.

Catching sight of the resting spot of her mate, she landed in front of the willow tree and collapsed underneath it. _I can't... do it, I can't. I have to tell him but I can't... Argetir, what should I do?_ She sniffed and buried her head in the snow, trying to get rid of the horrible feeling inside her. She gave a heavy sigh and stared the crashing waves in the distance. What was she doing? Argetir wouldn't do this, he would be strong. He would take care of Moon, he would... She knew what he would do. He would tell Moon the truth.

* * *

Moon ate his meal quickly, too quickly. It was a meager meal, but then again, they didn't usually have breakfast at all, especially when Father was gone. Mother usually spent most of the afternoon hunting and almost always brought back a nice dinner. Even so, he didn't think it was right to take the second rabbit. _There are two dragons, two rabbits; it made sense._ His stomach growled and he looked longingly at the remaining rabbit. _Mother did say I could have it, but if she can't find more food... No. I am saving it for her._

He heard a rustle outside. _More prey?_ Moon peeked his head out of the cave and widened his eyes when he saw it. There was a rabbit right in the middle of the clearing, rooting around the snow for who knows what. He couldn't believe his luck. _I could catch that. It's bigger than the one's Mother found, she would be so proud of me._ He tried to remember how his Mother had hunted the rabbits. _She was, like, super low to the ground, then she ran up to them and POUNCED!_

Moon tried to think it through in his head, though he oversimplified and missed a few key pieces of what had led to Adurna's successful hunt. As quietly as possible, the young dragon leaped from the entrance and promptly disappeared into a snow-drift. _Oof._ His wings were stuck above the drift, while the rest of his body was in the snow. He poked his head out and awkwardly tried to wiggle his way out of the drift. The rabbit turned it's head and froze at the sight of the dragon. Moon tried moving carefully towards the rabbit just like Mother had, but suddenly the rabbit turned and bolted towards the woods.

Pushing his way out of the drift, he raced after his prey as fast as his short legs could carry him. He could see the rabbit's bushy tail bobbing in the distance. Branches slowed him down as he ducked under or ran through them; all the while trying to follow the rabbit's zig-zag pattern it was taking through the trees. _Just a little more, come on, come on..._ But even as he tore through the forest and bounded over the drifts, he began to lose sight of the rabbit.

He slowed down and stopped, breathing hard from the exertion his run had taken out on him. Moon felt sudden shame for leaving the nest. Embarrassed, he turned and headed back towards home. He was supposed to be a Night Fury, not some foolish fox that chased after whatever it happened to see. The snow was falling harder now, with gray skies appearing overhead. As he leaped over another drift, he landed with an odd sound.

He cautiously stepped again and this time a noticeable high pitched creak come out from under him. Stopping in his tracks, he looked down at his claws. Scraping the snow away, he saw his reflection on the icy ground. Moving water was visible under the ice. He came to the terrifying realization that he was standing over one of the rivers that flowed through these woods.

Father had told him of the dangers water posed when hidden beneath a layer of ice. The deep coldness of ice water could seep under a dragon's scales and slow their movement until they were completely immobilized. Worse, he said if a dragon fell beneath the ice, they could lose track of where they that had fallen in and get trapped underneath the ice.

There were already noticeable cracks all over the surface of the ice. Moon knew he had to be careful about what he did next. Ever so slowly he began to move and instantly more cracks ran across the ice. He paused again and the cracks ceased. He wondered if jumping from here would be better than walking. He had no idea how wide the river was. He could be standing right in the middle or only over the edge of it. If he fell in the middle, he could be swept away, gone, forever.

The snow continued to fall heavily around him. Moon looked at his surroundings and tried to imagine where the river was underneath all this snow. There was a large empty space behind him; he wondered if that was the river. Then again, it may just be open space in the woods. A fallen pine tree lay in front of him, some paces away. He saw another, much larger crack begin to splinter across the ice right underneath him. That made his decision.

He bounded forward as far as he could and the ice splintered and broke behind him. He flapped his wings awkwardly, stretching out his forelegs to try and grab hold of the pine tree. Moon barely snagged a branch with a foreleg while the rest of his body landed heavily on the frozen surface of the river; which gave way beneath his hindquarters and plunged his lower half into the freezing water. He gasped in shock as he felt the sudden coldness stab at his hide like icy daggers.

Moon gasped and tried to lift himself up onto the pine tree with his foreleg. _Too cold._ He tried to pull himself out of the frigid waters, the branch bending into an increasingly concerning angle. The cold seeped through his limbs and threatened to make him lose his already precarious grip on the branch. _Too cold, so cold, can't move._ Moon tried to lift his other foreleg up, but the frozen water seemed to clutch at it, weighing it down. Panic and shock started to flood his thoughts. Grimacing, he used as much energy as he could muster to force his other foreleg out of the water. He swung his it over the branch and dug his wet claws into the pine's rough bark. Now with both of his forelegs, he hauled himself out of the icy water's clutches and up onto the tree.

The little dragon shuddered and lay there for a bit, shivering all the while. He shifted his head and thought about getting up, but his muscles didn't respond. _I can't, I just... need to rest, so cold._ He wrapped his aching wings around his frigid body and closed his eyes, all the while thinking about how much he regretted going after the stupid rabbit.

* * *

Adurna decided not to hunt on her way back, she needed to tell Moon the truth, the sooner the better. When she got back to the cave, she called his name, but no answer. _You have got to be kidding me._ She waited a few minutes, tapping her claws impatiently against the stone floor. Looking out towards the growing storm, she started pacing around the cave. After a few dozen paces she snorted in annoyance and left the cave to go look for him.

 _Moooon! Where are you, Moon?_ This was her fault. She should never have left him alone, not in this storm. She looked for tracks but found nothing thanks to the ongoing snowstorm. _What did I think he would do? Sit patiently in the cave like an obedient dragonet? No. Of course not. He's his Father's child._ She scoured the surroundings near the nest, pushing past the snow and trees for any sign of her Moon.

Finding nothing, she flew all the way to the southern shore and then back to the cave. Still, no sign of him. She was getting worried. The storm was at its peak now, the gray skies and wind were making it so she could barely see anything. Using her nose, Adurna slowly tried to trace Moon's steps from the cave out into the clearing but ended up losing his scent when she approached the edge of the woods.

Taking a guess at where he was starting to head, she began running through the woods, calling his name and trying to catch his scent again. It was getting darker out and the snow always seemed to be constantly hitting her right in her face, forcing her eyes into narrow slits. She refused to believe Moon was gone. If she had to, she would stay out all night until he was found.

She made wide circular sweeps throughout the woods, checking the thick groves of trees for any sign of her lost dragonet. She barrelled through snow drifts and frantically dug through the larger ones, searching for any sign that might lead her to Moon. This continued until she caught his scent near the brook that ran through the woods down to the ocean below.

Adurna finally found him lying limp on a spruce log near the brook. His eyes were tightly shut and there was already a mound of snow gathering over him. Adurna crept over to him, fearing the worst. Moon's wings were quivering around him, trying to bring warmth back to him and his chest was slowly rising and falling. She was overjoyed to find her little dragonet alive, but he looked so cold, too cold.

 _Moon... Moon dear, wake up sweetheart._ Adurna nosed at his cold scales, but Moon didn't so much as flinch at the touch. _Moon?_ Adurna tried not to think about how cold he was and focused on the fact that he was alive. Carefully scooping her little dragonet up, she gently lifted his small form up onto her back. She shivered in response to the frozen scales on her back and began to head back to the warm nest. _Hang on little Moon. You're going to be okay. I've got you now._


	3. Chapter 3: The First Catch

**The First Catch**

The sun was blazing overhead, shining through the clouds and filling each of them with a golden light that burst through them into a brilliant array of gold & lavender. The warm light shone on Moon's back as he continued to glide just beneath the clouds, but he couldn't seem to shake the growing feeling of coldness deep beneath his scales. He flapped his wings harder, trying to get closer to the warmth of the star above him.

As Moon entered the clouds, he felt a piercing numbness seep into his limbs down to the bone. His wings felt dull and heavy, too heavy for moving. Moon suddenly couldn't move at all. He plummeted towards the ground, his rate of descent increasing with every passing second. He strained to pick up his wings and his thoughts panicked as the ground approached him. A forest pocketed island appeared below him, and just before he slammed into the ground, he opened his eyes to the darkness of the nest.

Moon wasn't high in the sky, flying in the clouds and soaring beneath the sun. But he was cold, very, very cold. Shivering, he squeezed his eyes shut and tried to remember what happened after he fell into the river, but all he recalled was falling into a deep icy sleep after pulling himself out. He thought he might have heard his Mother's voice calling to him, somewhere distant and far away... She must have found him and rescued him from the storm, but where was she now?

Something smelled awful. Moon couldn't see the source of the smell in the dark and quickly gave up the pursuit. Weakly lifting his head, he tried calling for his mother. Surprisingly, his voice came out as a partial squeak and he soon realized his mouth felt dry as sand. The small dragon licked his lips and picked himself up, shuddering as the night's cold breeze spilled through the entrance of the nest. The entrance had drifted over several times, with sharp icicles protruding from the top of the opening. Moon thought about his Mother. _Mother never hunts at night, why isn't she here with me? Why else would she be gone? Did the humans get her? Where is she?_

Moon stumbled backward and knelt down, quivering and trying to shake the general drowsiness out of his limbs. He wasn't sure if he could wake up again if the cold pulled him back to sleep. His wings and tail felt numb around him, lying limp on the stone floor around him refusing to do anything. _I need warmth... Fire, fire is heat._ Moon's green gaze flickered to the woodpile. It took some time before he crawled over and dragged some logs out from the bottom of the pile.

He concentrated, inhaling deeply, trying to ignite the fire within his chest, but... but nothing. Not even a spark. The cave was still pitch black, the dark outline of the logs barely visible even to the Night Fury's keen eyes. Frustrated, Moon huffed and repeated the process with no success. He lost track of how many times he tried to light the increasingly frustrating logs, but eventually, he managed to release a tiny bolt of blue flame onto one of the logs and it started burning, casting long slivers of light across the nest.

Moon felt warmer just moments after lighting the fire, unsure whether the flames warmed him more than the act of breathing the fire. After dragging more wood onto the fire, he curled around his flames and let himself warm up, all the while thinking about his Mother and her whereabouts. _She'll be back soon, I know she will. She promised... Soon..._ The little dragon found no comfort when he caught sight of the source of the wretched smell that had spread its way throughout the cave. The light from the fire illuminated the outline of the decomposing rabbit he had saved for Mother. _How long have I been sleeping?_

Staring into the fire, Moon tried not to panic and jump to any unnecessary conclusions. He had to believe Mother would be back, not in a million years would she ever abandon him. She must have gotten caught up hunting and forgotten all about the rabbit he had saved, or something like that. Yes, that was it. She would be back by morning with a big catch of fish and would explain everything to him.

The sun was just peaking over the hilltops as the little dragon closed his eyes and drifted off into a light slumber, trying not to think about how delicious water would taste on his parched lips.

* * *

A rustling outside woke Moon up with a start. His ears went straight up and he sprang to his feet. _Mother?_ He rushed to the entrance and poked his head out, only to see a pair of squirrels darting about on the branches of a pine tree. Moon sighed in disappointment and broke off an icicle before slinking back to lie down on the far wall of the cave.

Moon broke off a chunk of ice from his icicle and swished it around in his jaws, trying to imagine it was cool water from the river or even the lake on the far side of the island. It had been two days since he first woke, but there was still no sign of Mother. Moon had spent most of the time either pacing the perimeter of the cave or staring out the entrance, resisting the urge to leave the nest. He had moved the woodpile around several times, rearranging and restacking it to pass the time. He could barely smell his Mother's scent anymore and was seriously starting to wonder if she would ever come back.

Hunger stabbed at his belly as he finished off the icicle. Food was going to become a problem that needed to be addressed soon. That's really all he was thinking of most of the time, food. A big juicy fish, trout, salmon, pike... mmm. He would have eaten an eel if nothing else. Trying not to think about his aching stomach, he stood up and continued pacing around the cave, his tail swishing the pebbles and small stones that had become his new friends over the last couple days.

His Father's stories were all that kept him sane; he replayed them in his head over and over again, imagining what it would be like to be in them himself, flying across the archipelagos, meeting all sorts of dragons and going on grand adventures with them. Just to be able to fly above the clouds, to leave the snowy island behind and explore the world... Moon always drifted back to reality, recalling he was just as flightless as the squirrels chattering outside were.

Moon decided he would leave the cave tomorrow and find Mother for himself if she hadn't returned by then. He knew to leave the cave by himself had almost always proven to be a terrible idea on his part, but this was ridiculous. Mother had been gone far too long, and he knew dreaming of fish wouldn't keep him going much longer. Moon stopped at the entrance again and stared out into the wilderness, straining to see anything past the first few lines of snow-capped spruce trees. _Please, come back Mother. I need you._

* * *

After a short night's sleep, the sun rose over the morning of the third day since Moon had awoken to find himself alone in the cave. Never had he felt so hungry in his life. He needed food, anything more filling than icicles would do. He also needed to find Mother, she must have gotten lost flying or something, though that seemed incredibly unlike her, that had to be the case.

The dark-scaled dragon stood up and stretched, thoughtlessly warbling a greeting to the rocks he had slept next to. _I'm going to go crazy, if I haven't already, unless I find someone to talk to,_ he thought to himself, taking the first few tentative steps out of the cave he had been holed up in for who knows how long. The clearing in front of him was clear of any dragon tracks and the forest seemed eerily silent around him. He decided first and foremost he needed some actual water, so he took a right and headed towards the lake on the west side of the island.

It was late morning when he arrived at the lake, and he felt incredibly stupid upon arriving. _If the river was frozen than the lake most certainly is._ The entire surface of the lake was frozen, covered in snow, with no viewable openings to get water from. Moon stared across the wide landscape for a bit, then decided he was getting water, whether or not the lake was making it difficult. He padded to the edge of the lake, scraping the snow away until he found where the land meets the ice.

Using his rather pitiful fire blasts, the ice took several hits before he managed to melt a hole through the surface of the ice. Past the steam, Moon could see glorious freshwater just a couple inches past the top of the frozen surface. Moon cautiously stood on the dry land and stretched his head over the hole, tasting the water. It seemed colder than the icicles but never had real liquid water tasted so good before. He drew back his teeth and drank to his heart's content.

Now that his thirst was quenched, he felt hungrier than ever. Figuring his chances of catching a fish in the small hole were slim to none, Moon considered seeking out some prey back in the woods or perhaps the tidepools Mother usually hunted in. Just as he was about to leave the watering hole, he saw a fish swim up to the surface and nearly bop him on the nose.

Changing his plans, Moon spent the rest of the day crouching next to the hole in the lake and watching with sharp eyes for another fish to appear. When another one did appear, he dove his head into the water and desperately made some poorly conceived attempts to grab the fish with his jaws. He failed, and after failing three more times with three more fish or the same fish three times, he was starting to lose his patience.

When the next fish showed up, Moon would be ready. He was beyond ready already, he was ready three hours ago, he refused to fail again. Unfortunately, he ended up missing several more fish before the last fish literally leaped out of the water and Moon managed to slap it away from the safety of the waterhole, thanking whatever stroke of luck that gave him that opportunity.

Moon gulped the fish down, overjoyed that he had finally managed to catch his first real food, luck or no luck. He was still rather hungry, but the fish would be enough to tide him over for now. He wished Mother or Father could have seen him catch his first fish.

The dragonet decided he would check the tide pools for Mother since that's where she usually hunted, but first, he would check the cave on his way to make sure she hadn't returned while he had gone. Taking note of where his waterhole was, Moon started back towards the nest.

That was when he heard it. A faint roar echoed from the direction of the woods, and Moon knew it was the unmistakable roar of a dragon, a very angry dragon.

* * *

Author's Note:

First off, thank you for reading! I'll keep trying to write a chapter every week so the story doesn't get stale for ya'all. I've got some long-term plans for this story, but if anyone has any opinions at all, drop me a review! I would love to see what other people think about my writing so I can continue to improve.

Until next week,

-Firebeach47


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